Data from: Camouflage, detection and identification of moving targets

Nearly all research on camouflage has investigated its effectiveness for concealing stationary objects. However, animals have to move, and patterns that only work when the subject is static will heavily constrain behaviour. We investigated the effects of different camouflages on the three stages of predation—detection, identification and capture—in a computer-based task with humans. An initial experiment tested seven camouflage strategies on static stimuli. In line with previous literature, background-matching and disruptive patterns were found to be most successful. Experiment 2 showed that if stimuli move, an isolated moving object on a stationary background cannot avoid detection or capture regardless of the type of camouflage. Experiment 3 used an identification task and showed that while camouflage is unable to slow detection or capture, camouflaged targets are harder to identify than uncamouflaged targets when similar background objects are present. The specific details of the camouflage patterns have little impact on this effect. If one has to move, camouflage cannot impede detection; but if one is surrounded by similar targets (e.g. other animals in a herd, or moving background distractors), then camouflage can slow identification. Despite previous assumptions, motion does not entirely ‘break’ camouflage.现有关于伪装（camouflage）的研究几乎均聚焦于其对静止目标的隐蔽效能。然而动物需要移动，仅在目标静止时生效的伪装模式会极大限制其行为自由度。 本研究通过人类参与的计算机化任务，探究了不同伪装策略对捕食行为三个核心阶段——即侦测（detection）、识别（identification）与捕获（capture）——的影响。 初始实验针对静态刺激物（static stimuli）测试了七种伪装策略，结果与既往研究文献相符：背景匹配型（background-matching）与干扰型（disruptive patterns）伪装模式的隐蔽效果最为显著。 实验2结果显示，若刺激物发生移动，静止背景下的孤立移动物体无论采用何种伪装策略，均无法规避侦测与捕获。 实验3采用识别任务范式，结果表明：尽管伪装无法延缓侦测或捕获进程，但当背景中存在相似物体时，带伪装的目标相较于无伪装目标更难被识别。 伪装模式的具体细节对该识别难度差异影响甚微。 若必须移动，伪装无法阻碍侦测；但当目标被同类（例如兽群中的其他个体，或背景中移动的干扰物）环绕时，伪装可延缓识别过程。 与既往假设相悖的是，运动并不会完全‘破坏’伪装效能。